WEEK 40 – DAY 4

PAPERCLIP

Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
Colossians 1:15-17

When I moved up from teaching second graders to teaching fifth and sixth graders, I decided the zoo theme with stuffed animals would have to go. But what could I use to decorate our room that would have a meaningful theme? It was staring me right in the face—the paperclip! Our verse for the year was Colossians 1:17, and the paperclip became our reminder that Christ holds it all together. The paperclip has a plain and simple appearance, and yet it is an extremely useful tool. The Bible tells us that Jesus “had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him” (Isaiah 53:2), but it also tells us “the Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being” (Hebrews 1:3). In other words, just like the lowly paperclip, there is much more to Christ than His outward appearance when He walked the earth. He is the creator and sustainer of the universe.

If Jesus keeps the entire universe on course. Surely, we can trust Him to hold us together as well. There are days we think we might fall apart, but we simply need to slow down, breathe deeply, and pray. We need to “cast all my anxiety on him because he cares for me” (I Peter 5:7) because when we do so, He promises that His peace will guard our hearts and minds (Philippians 4:7).

Father, we hand over our concerns to You. There are always stresses in life, but we know You are able to keep all the pieces together even though we are not. Help us to slow down and allow Your Spirit to guide us each day and minister to our hearts. We trust that our Creator is also our Sustainer. Thank You for the power You provide to live for You each day.